Gadget round-up

Image 1 of 2

Image 1 of 2

Various

12:01AM GMT 11 Dec 2005

No chips please

Hydropal has a nifty filter to remove all the nastiness that stops people from drinking tap water. Put a dent in Evian's share price and get your daily 2·5 litres for pennies. It can also be used outdoors to filter water from rivers, streams and lakes. The filter should last six months before needing a clean. £14.99; 020 8847 4422

Smoke passes through a carbon filter in the USB car ashtray to reduce the stench. Also runs on batteries. £9.99, www.directusbstore.com; 01327 300566

Playtime

A marriage made in cyberspace. Take some cool Oakley shades, snap on a Motorola Bluetooth headset and Robert's your mother's brother - geek chic moves to a new level with Razrwires. They give 100 per cent UV protection and the freedom to wave at your new admirers as you cruise the streets or slopes. £200, www.carphonewarehouse.com

Break the bank

If you thought bling was a thing of the past, think again. You'll be able to dazzle from 50ft with a T-Mobile SideKick II that's been customised by those spangly people at Crystalskins. Paris Hilton was famously filmed in flagrante on her SideKick, but you might just want to use yours to 'web and walk', as the publicity jargon has it. The SideKick II costs up to £49.99, depending on price plan, and the crystal coating another £200. www.t-mobile.co.uk; www.crystalskins.co.uk

My-pod

Got a prehistoric iPod? Battery flatter than a roadkill rabbit? At last, a solution. Sonnet's replacement battery kits for 1-4 generation iPods, photo and mini last, they say, up to 78 per cent longer than the originals. In short, everything you'll need to raise the dead. From £22.27; 0845 004 1983, www.macheaven.co.uk

The watch lover

Many more children will be given one of the world's best watches when they come of age, thanks to the 10-year-old Patek Philippe campaign: 'You never really own a Patek Philippe, you just look after it for the next generation,' writes Nick Hurrell. The Patek brand has doubled its sales and added a new dynamism to its typically classic product range. The 5146 is a good example: a complicated watch that displays the days, dates and months of the year, as well as moon phases, and a power reserve gauge, while still preserving the trademark simplicity of a Patek. There are many less complicated watches that struggle to be so dignified. No wonder fathers want to pass one on to their boys. Patek Philippe 5146 in white gold, £15,650; 020 7493 8866

Technophile

A US judge has ruled invalid a $450 million settlement between NTP, a patent-holding firm, and Research in Motion, the maker of BlackBerry. NTP reckons the technology behind the BlackBerry infringes its patents. An injunction could be re-issued that might shut down BlackBerry service in the US.

Chelsea Pensioners are going on-line at a new cyber café, which has been opened at the 313-year-old Royal Hospital. It's part of a nationwide campaign to get more over-60s on-line.